EFF Creates a ‘Hall of Shame’ for Disputed Takedowns

The Electronic Frontier Foundation’s latest effort to call out what it considers violations of copyright and trademark law comes in the form of a mock-awards page, complete with “honorees,” called the Takedown Hall of Shame.

Electronic Frontier Foundation

A new section on EFF’s site seeks to shine a spotlight on questionable copyright complaints.

The tech-advocacy group highlights a handful of cases it calls “the most egregious examples of takedown abuse,” usually involving businesses or organizations that cry foul — or issue takedown notices — even when their copyrighted materials are used in accordance with fair-use laws.

Whether or not a hall of shame will spook potential litigators is anyone’s guess. Ars Technica’s Nate Anderson said that Digital Millennium Copyright Act takedowns aren’t as widespread as these examples might imply.

“If you talk to lawyers for the big content providers…they will point out that the flood of DMCA takedown notices they issue results only in a handful of problem cases,” he wrote. “These are then — unfairly, in their view — harped on repeatedly to suggest that they care nothing for fair use, have no sense of proportion and probably nibble on succulent children for breakfast.”

As Techdirt’s Mike Masnick wrote, however, “who knows if this will cause lawyers to think twice before issuing bogus takedowns (I doubt it), but at least it should shine some light on how widely copyright and trademark law are abused to stifle speech.”